LEARNING DAILY

John 15:3-4, You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.  Jesus

Jesus is talking to the disciples. He is telling them they are “clean” because they have saving faith in Him. It is a point Jesus made when He washed their feet (John 13:10). Why the emphasis? Because the “clean” are the branches He is talking about who will eventually produce fruit for the kingdom of God. Those who are unclean are imposters; even though Jesus did not say it, Judas is an example of the unclean. Without saving faith the unclean are destined to be cut off from the vine and are destroyed.

As one who has given their life to Jesus, to be saved by Him and be changed by Him, aren’t you glad to be reassured of your place in God’s kingdom! Jesus was not talking about Christians who are losing their salvation. He is making sure the disciples and Believers today understand they are not among the dead branches He is talking about. He is explaining that bearing spiritual fruit is the result of being attached to the vine not the qualification for being attached to the True Vine in the first place.

However, those who bear fruit will be pruned. Remember Jesus said His Father was the vinedresser or the One who lovingly prunes or disciplines those already bearing fruit. Hebrews 12:6 reminds us, “For whom the Lord loves He chastens [disciplines] and scourges [punishes] every son who He receives.” That means that every loving father – including God – takes an active role in the growth of his children. God will correct Believers when correction is needed and/or place them in situations that will help them grow spiritually to be more like Jesus. Remember Jesus said the narrow way was not an easy way! The point is believers not becoming discouraged when hardship or difficulty comes their way. The writer of Hebrews continued in verse 11, “Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.”

The clean – Believers – are to remain, to abide in Jesus and Jesus in them. Abiding refers to being connected to or holding tightly to. Jesus is stating that the disciples and all believers must stay close, “submit” to Him; that implies they must be obedient and persevere (in the context of pruning). Why? Because one cannot be spiritually fruitful unless connected to the true source of life, the True Vine – the Lord Jesus Christ. John 15:9-10 tells Believers how to bear more fruit, “As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; you will abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love”. The more intimately Believers are connected to the True Vine, the more effective and productive they will be. David Jeremiah writes in his Study Bible, “Believers enjoy a reciprocal relationship with God. His words abide in them and their branches abide in Him. A natural outgrowth of that abiding relationship is prayer. The most visible impressions of that relationship are joy and love. Jesus wants the Christian’s joy to be full.”

Just as the Lord Jesus passes the love of the Father to each of us, Believers must be passing that love on to others. The vine passes life to the branches to produce fruit. Believers need to be doing the same through their obedience to the Lord Jesus Christ and His Word. We do that through what we say and through our actions.